There is one disruptor, however, that might not seem so obvious. A severe capacity shortage in the trucking industry is affecting the flow of food to retail businesses and having a negative impact on the consumer experience. There simply aren’t enough trucks and truck drivers to get products from the manufacturer and distributor to the store.

FMI is working to get as many exciting new products to the marketplace as possible with its recently inaugurated Emerge program, designed to break down the barriers for new companies looking for wider grocery distribution and more sales velocity.

Private brands have become full-fledged brands in their own right, as evidenced by 69 percent of consumers saying it’s very or somewhat important to have a good assortment of private brands in food and beverage. These own-brand products continue to make strides and hit an upward growth trajectory again.

There’s nothing stale about the fresh category in retail, which is arguably turning the food retail business on its head. It’s the ultimate disruptive category when it comes to competing for share of the business and we dedicated significant resources to our fresh strategy at FMI this year.